Moonset Between Meeker and Longs #2. RMNP, Colorado, 2013
Now and then, for a bit of adventure, I like to hoist my fanny perpendicular at about 1 a.m., drive to some trailhead in the nearby Front Range of the Rockies, and hike up to what I think might be a super-duper photogenic spot as the sun rises to start the day.
This is something I like to do when the Moon is full, or nearly so, and will be starting to set just as the Sun comes up. The moonlight means I can usually hike without a headlamp and the timing of moonset usually means I get that extra lunar element in my landscape shots as the sun rises and the dawn glow washes over the terrain, all without excessive dynamic range.
Last Sunday, my goal was Chasm Lake, just below the Diamond on Longs Peak. By my calculations (Naval Observatory moonrise/set, sunrise/set tables) the Moon would be hanging somewhere above the saddle between Mt. Meeker and Longs at dawn. (A really conscientious photographer would have also consulted The Photographer’s Ephemeris, but I was feeling a bit lazy…and I knew it would be a cool hike no matter what.)
I started up the snow-packed trail at 2:30 a.m. and, for the record, I wasn’t the only idiot starting a winter condition-type hike at that hour…a guy from Minnesota was also sorting out his equipment for his solo stroll up to the Boulderfield and a recon of a few climbing routes he had planned for the summer.
Why do I do such things? Originally, I thought it was to make unique images with my camera at an hour and a place that few photographers make the effort to reach. But last Sunday, as I climbed above treeline and could see the lights of Denver some 50 miles to the southeast…as I gazed up at the huge brilliantly moonlit and snow-filled bowl leading up toward Longs Peak…as the snow crunched and squeaked like styrofoam underneath my Yaktrax-armed winter boots…as I listened to the wind gusts cycle, roll and boom across the high mountain…It occurred to me that I really do it for the powerful experience of being alone in the high country. It is this primal connection that grounds me. It is, for me, what is real about the Earth and the human experience. Everything else is bullshit.
And if I happen to come away with a few good images, that’s a bonus.
P.S. Oh yeah…Never made it to Chasm Lake as it was still too snowpacked to get there and back quickly and safely. When I’m alone, I keep my safety margin nice and plump. Those heavy April storms left a nice snowpack throughout northern Colorado.
You might also like
2 Comments
I like it. Most of the time it’s about showing up and being in the moment.
You are right, Jimbo. It is amazing, though, how many folks don’t put in the effort to “show up”.